


In the Aftermath

by Yrindor



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Gen, Guilt, Injury, Introspection, No Dialogue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-15
Updated: 2016-10-15
Packaged: 2018-08-22 12:18:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8285584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yrindor/pseuds/Yrindor
Summary: It's not only the loser who feels guilty after the game.  It's not only the captain who feels responsible for his teammates' injuries.





	

**Atobe**

He sees it the minute the match starts. He suspects Tezuka hasn't noticed it yet, but he sees the way Tezuka is protecting his left arm, just as he sees the way it's putting the strain on Tezuka's shoulder instead.

He wishes Tezuka would forfeit. Even with the forfeit, Seigaku could win in the sixth match. They both have to know it's going to come to that anyway; he can see how Tezuka's barely holding on. But Tezuka is stubborn and determined to take the match to the very end, and with Hyoutei's advancement on the line, Atobe's not willing to give up either.

He can only imagine how much pain Tezuka must be in. He saw the look on Tezuka's face on that serve, saw the way he crumpled around his shoulder. The match should have ended there, but Tezuka had refused. Tezuka is still playing somehow, but he shouldn't be. Atobe can barely stand to watch.

Every time he send the ball across the net, he hopes Tezuka will fail to return it. Every time Tezuka serves, he hopes it will be a fault. But Tezuka keeps fighting and fighting even though Atobe can see the pain that flashes across his face every time he moves, pain so severe it paralyzes him for a split second after every serve. Tezuka isn't trying to hide it from him the way he's trying to hide it from his teammates. After all, Atobe knows; there's nothing to hide from him.

As the tiebreak stretches on longer and longer, Atobe's own shoulder begins to ache in sympathy. When Tezuka finally falters and the ball hits the net and falls, Atobe feels like his heart stops for a second too. Around him, everyone erupts into cheers, but from where he stands, it's a hollow victory.

If had been truly strong, the match would never have dragged on for so long. If he were truly strong, he would have been able to defeat Tezuka even before the tiebreak began.

When they shake hands after the match, he sees the way Tezuka's holding his left arm stiffly at his side, the way he's clenching his jaw like even the smallest movement of his shoulder is unbearable, and any joy he had felt at the victory turns bitter in his mouth.

He had baited Tezuka into the match, but he hadn't been able to follow through, and he knew the price would continue to haunt him.

**Oishi**

He finds Tezuka in the locker room, struggling to button his shirt one-handed. His captain isn't trying to hide the pain now that he thinks he's alone, and it makes his heart catch in his throat to witness it.

"Tezuka, let me see," he says as he sits down next to him on the bench. Tezuka doesn't even try to argue as Oishi slides the shirt back off, and that's as worrying as anything else.

He knows Tezuka iced his shoulder for most of the sixth match, but it's still visibly swollen, the surrounding muscles so tense he can see them pulling the joint out of line. He runs his hands lightly over the area, trying to find his landmarks as he traces the lines of the tendons and muscles. He's barely using any pressure at all, but Tezuka still flinches under him, pulling away reflexively for a split second before he clamps down on the reaction and replaces it with his usual, stoic self.

Once he has a better sense of what he's dealing with, Oishi takes out the tube of muscle cream he always keeps in his bag and squeezes some onto his fingers.

"Bear with me, Buchou," he says as he digs his thumbs into the worst of the knots. Tezuka barely responds, but Oishi can see the way he's clenching his jaw as he stares at the wall in front of him, his breathing too calm and measured to be anything other than a deliberate attempt at control. He knows it has to be agony, and he has to force his hands to keep moving. He tries to remind himself that this is compassion in this case; Tezuka will feel better when his shoulder is no longer locked up in spasms.

He wishes it hadn't come to this. He wishes he had noticed sooner; Atobe should never have seen it before he did. He wishes he had said something sooner, wishes he could have stopped Tezuka sooner. He wishes Tezuka hadn't sacrificed everything on a match that ultimately hadn't even mattered for the rankings.

But at the same time, he can't blame his captain. He knows that, had their positions been reversed, he would likely have made the same choice.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, comments and feedback are welcome and appreciated.


End file.
